5.7 Time Management Strategy: Staying Focused and Organized

Protecting Your Time

Even with the best planning, we may encounter things that draw our attention away from the things that are most important to us. For our purposes, protecting your time means preventing other people, events, or distractions from infringing on time that we’ve decided to devote to the things that are most important to us. Ultimately, time management does not happen accidentally. Setting boundaries and taking intentional steps are necessary to be successful in protecting your time.

Avoid Multitasking

Many of us are used to multitasking—doing more than one thing at a time—and it seems that we are often encouraged to multitask as a way to get more done in less time. Some do it so often they may not even realize they’re doing it. The reality is, most of us are not capable of devoting our full concentration to multiple tasks at the same time and are, therefore, sacrificing both time and effort. In one study, only about 2.5% of participants fell under the label of supertaskers meaning they can perform dual tasks without degradation of performance on either (Watson & Strayer, 2010). In applying this to the world outside the lab, we can conclude that for 97.5% of us, tasks are performed more efficiently and productively when each one receives its own time and focus. As much as you are able, try to focus on one thing at a time. Don’t be afraid to try some new strategies to help optimize the time you are spending on your studies, work, or other daily tasks.

Minimize Distractions

Many people can be easily distracted from tasks that seem overwhelming, boring, or unclear, but even when we’re feeling excited and ready to take on a task, we can find ourselves being pulled away, devices like cell phones and laptops being the biggest culprits. Studies have shown that increased cell phone use is associated with negatively impacting academic performance, subjective well-being, and mental health (Lepp et al., 2014). Have you ever noticed yourself being engrossed by a course lecture, but find that the chime or notifications of incoming emails or text messages keep pulling your attention away? Or, have you ever told yourself you’d check your phone for just two minutes and find that you’re still there 20 minutes later? We are surrounded by people, sounds, smells, and activity demanding our attention, and it can be difficult to say no to these distractions, whether welcomed or not.

To combat distractions, consider the following strategies:

• Go offline. When working on a task that needs your attention, remove technology that typically distracts you from that task, including electronic devices. Turning off the TV, setting a time limit on checking your phone or social media, closing unused browsers on your devices, and finding a place to study away from interruptions by others are all great ways to help you focus your attention on the specific things you’ve chosen. Silencing or turning off your phone and closing your email or chat windows can go a long way (Stothart et al., 2015). If you’re someone who uses their laptop to take notes in class, know that some research links writing by hand—as opposed to typing notes—with better retention and processing (Mueller & Oppenheimer, 2014).
• Change your environment. Some environments are more distracting than others, depending on the person. For example, some people find working in a coffee shop to be stimulating and motivating, whereas others find it loud and distracting. Some people work best at home, whereas others find it too easy to procrastinate by shifting to other home activities, such as cleaning, doing laundry, playing with a pet, or cooking. Experiment with different environments to determine which work best for you and in what situations.
• De-clutter your environment. Have you ever heard the saying “cluttered environment, cluttered mind?” A physically cluttered environment competes for your attention and over-stimulates the brain, which can add stress and decrease performance (McMains & Kastner, 2011).
• Do the worst first. If you’re distracted because the task seems boring, overwhelming, or uninteresting, try doing the part you dread the most first so it’s over and done. Often, this strategy works for small tasks and helps the next steps or other tasks feel more approachable.
• Use momentum. If you’re easily distracted from a task you don’t enjoy, use the momentum from something you do enjoy to help get you started. For example, Sarah enjoys cleaning, but hates doing laundry. When using the momentum strategy, Sarah starts by cleaning her living space and then, without stopping, immediately shifts to doing the laundry.

Avoid Adding More to Your Schedule

Sometimes turning down new tasks is the best way to protect your time. If you encounter an opportunity or are asked to spend time on something that you haven’t prioritized, don’t have time for, or aren’t interested in, here are a few ways to respond:

• “Thank you for thinking of me, but I don’t have the flexibility in my schedule to help you with that this semester.”
• “Based on everything I have going on right now, I don’t think I’m the best person for this.”
• “That overlaps with time I’ve set aside to focus on self-care. Can you follow up with me next month to see if my availability has changed?”
• “That sounds urgent, and I wouldn’t be able to work on that until next week. If that isn’t soon enough, you might want to ask someone else.”
• “I have a midterm on Thursday and can’t do that for you this week. Have you asked any other coworkers?”

Any of these options are straightforward and assertive, while also polite and gracious for the opportunity. In other words, you’re saying yes to the person, but saying no to the task. Another way to protect your time is by carefully weighing decisions before saying yes or no. If you’re offered a new opportunity, it is entirely appropriate to ask for a day or two to think things through before giving your response. You can respond by saying, “That sounds like a great opportunity, but I’m not certain if it’s something that fits into my schedule. Let me check my calendar and consider it and I’ll let you know by noon tomorrow. I’m just not able to commit if you need an answer right now.”

Taking Breaks

Though distractions can hinder effective time management, taking breaks is essential. Breaks are intended to re-energize the body and mind, restore focus, process information, store learning, and foster wellbeing. Taking even short breaks can help us maintain our focus on tasks, especially repetitive or mundane tasks (Ariga & Lleras, 2011). Part of exercising the power you have to control your time and focus is also sometimes choosing to give it to things that will improve your wellbeing. This also means that break times should be factored into the total time it takes to complete tasks; cramming or otherwise waiting until the last minute to complete a task could force an individual to skip breaks, forfeiting the benefits of added focus, retention, and creativity.

You can choose from a number of different activities when deciding how to spend a break:

• Stretch
• Take a walk
• Call a friend
• Watch a YouTube video or two
• Take a short shower
• Do something creative like dancing, singing, or drawing
• Do a ten-minute meditation
• Run a quick errand

Staying Organized

Student Perspectives: How Do You Stay Organized?

Video Transcript

The time put toward staying organized can be thought of as time put toward helping your future self. You’ll be doing yourself a favor by putting time toward organization. And you deserve it!

Organized Spaces

For some, a perceived messy or disorganized environment is stressful in and of itself. Unorganized spaces can increase stress and hinder productivity or our ability to process information (McMains & Kastner, 2011). By keeping tidy space for yourself, you eliminate the unnecessary stress of not having what you need available, or spending time looking for things.

Are there spaces in your life that could use some tidying up? Spending even five minutes to organize or recycle papers, wash dishes, and fold clothes can make a difference. The same is true for your email inbox and electronic devices; taking the time to trash unneeded emails and files and setting up systems for prioritizing and organizing messages and documents can be a time saver in the long run. Being able to quickly find things you need in physical and digital spaces can contribute to effective time management.